Fufu is Flyin’

Over the years, Rhode Island has welcomed a few restaurants serving West African food, but in this time of TikTok and trending foods the West African staple called “fufu” has come into its own. That’s certainly a good thing for Augusta Marsh-Socree and Michelle Davidson, the mother-and-daughter team behind Glorious West African Restaurant. Their small-but-mighty eatery in South Providence keeps their menu streamlined, with just a handful of offerings and daily specials. But fufu with pepper soup, jollof rice (cooked with a spicy tomato broth) with chicken, spicy spinach and fried plantains are regulars. Various stews and sauces alternately feature cassava leaves, okra, collard greens, palm fruit, sweet potato greens or jute leaves. Fufu, a dumpling-like starch, pounded into shape from boiled cassava, can be eaten with any of those—by pinching off a bite and dipping it in. Chef Marsh-Socree, a native of Liberia, is glad for fufu’s popularity, since Covid has created tough times for her restaurant. She is proud of the homemade African food she makes, and she is always “open for comments about the food—it’s the only way we can improve and keep going!”

1230 Elmwood Ave., Providence. 401.228.7070; GloriousAfricanFood.com